This section introduces aspects that may help facilitate a better understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, these statements are to be read in this light and are not to be understood as admissions about what is or is not prior art.
In response to shortage of low cost fossil fuel, the automobile industry in the last decades has produced a large number of gasoline/electrical hybrid and fully electric vehicles. In either of these categories, a large battery pack is used to provide power to propel a vehicle. The range of a vehicle running on such a battery pack depends on the capacity of the battery. Vehicles with larger battery packs are becoming more prevalent. However, these battery packs present challenges.
One such challenge is crashworthiness. A battery pack typically includes a plurality of cells. Nowadays lithium-ion battery technology is the technology of choice, while just as recent as a few years ago nickel metal hydride was most prevalent. While lithium ion battery packs provide a larger energy density, lithium ion packs are known to be unstable when subject to large impact forces. As a result, much effort has been placed in developing enclosures that protect the cells in the event of a collision. Exemplary enclosures of the prior art can be found in U.S. Pub. Pat. App. 20120160088.
However, many of the enclosures that have been developed are bulky and add a considerable amount of weight to the vehicle, thereby negatively affecting the vehicle's range operating on the battery pack. Furthermore, while the enclosures may be effective to provide protection for the battery pack in one direction in the event of a collision, they may not be as effective in other directions. Furthermore, current designs aim at protecting the battery pack during a vehicular crash. While a heavy battery pack may be protected, the occupants inside the vehicle may be subjected to more severe acceleration during a crash as a result of the conventional battery pack design. It should be emphasized that the main focus of protection is of the occupant(s) inside the vehicle. With the improvements in safety of battery cells, a proper arrangement of the heavy battery pack will enhance the personnel safety while the multifunctional use of batteries will reduce the overall weight of the vehicle.
Therefore, new enclosure arrangements are needed that can protect a battery pack comprising of a plurality of cells in multiple directions in the event of a collision resulting in impact forces on the battery cells and which can improve safety of the vehicle passengers utilizing the battery pack.